


A Serendipitous Sheaf

by Adura_Aflame



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-24
Updated: 2019-09-20
Packaged: 2020-09-25 21:54:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20378719
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Adura_Aflame/pseuds/Adura_Aflame
Summary: Owing to the prodigal letter-carrying skills of the Warrior of Light, a newly-awakened G'raha Tia receives a very special correspondence.





	1. Salutation

_ Dearest G’raha, _

_ I extend my warmest greetings to you, and I sincerely hope this letter finds you well. Although, I did instruct Adura to bequeath it should she find you wanting comfort and guidance in your brave new world. You’ve not been slumbering altogether long, I presume, but rest assured that much has happened. If Adura proved quite excitable, and you have not yet heard the tale, pray pause here and seek it out. _

_ Upon your return, I imagine you are smiling, as if beholding some long lost, impossible treasure. Take care not to rip the parchment in your zeal. Next, a few deep breaths. Good. Now, to continue. _

_ Do not think yourself beholden to me, or that you ought to become me. I am a creation of dire circumstance and necessity, forces which have, and will, affect you differently. Whatever this new future may bring, hold fast to your dream of a brighter world for all, like Princess Salina before you. Let your mind and your heart lead you in equal measure. Always heed the clarion call to extend a hand to those who grieve for lost ones, for home, for friendship. Trust the kind eyes of the Warrior of Light, for they hold even those hopes lost to the machinations of time. _

_ Perhaps more than you will ever know, I believe in you. In all you do, fare you well. _

_ With all my faith, _

_ The Crystal Exarch _

_*~~* _

_ Exarch, _

_ By Hydaelyn, where to begin a missive to an autonomous iteration of oneself? It is a strange and fascinating honor to make your acquaintance. I hope you will accept overtures of friendship in reply. _

_ I thought it best to wait for a firm enough grasp of events before putting pen to paper. Admittedly, I could not wait. Should I one day find the time, I ought to write a thesis on the experience of communicating with one’s own possible self. Sharlayan’s halls of learning would be rocked to the core! _

_ But, returning to the matter at hand. My deepest thanks for your words of advice and succor; I cannot help but take them very much to heart. I know nothing of what I might offer you in return, but I promise to think of something. _

_ Adura is a changed woman for her exploits in your name. I trust you can imagine how she looks at me. Then again, knowing me, perhaps not. She favors me with the gentlest looks, uncaring if I see them or no. She is ever keen to guard me and see that I am whole, both in body and in spirit. Ah, at least one piece of sage advice occurs to me: _

_ Don’t be an idiot. She loves you, too. _

_ I am not worthy of her, not by far. But—no, do not put this letter aside. Still with me? A few deep breaths. Good. Now, heed me: _

_ You are worthy of her. Pray, take that to heart. _

_ In friendship, _

_ G’raha _


	2. Actions and Obstacles

_ Dearest G’raha, _

_Setting aside the __rather bold__ closing of your previous letter for the time being, I am reliably informed that you have--I hardly know how else to put this--seen the bodies. And, you are aware that our friends were placed in such a regrettable state by naught less than my own grievous and recurrent errors. Given the singularly rare and unique opportunity before us, I wonder if we might collaborate toward some arcane theory and method that would serve to restore them to their rightful places and forms. Months of personal inquiries of local spiritualists, historians, and mage-scholars,_ _as well as an in-depth survey of this world’s literature, has yielded nothing. Might I send you forth to the Axiom? I do well remember the libraries of Sharlayan to be imposing, inspiring, and __unspeakably__ dry_. _I would thank you very much for your service, as would our friends. They have each found a cherished purpose here, but I would restore to them their vast horizons. Even _<strike>_Master Matoya _</strike>_Archon Y’shtola has taken to assuring me in a distinctly maternal fashion that I need not exhaust myself overmuch in my present pursuit. I, an exceedingly old man, ought to heed such advice at last. By contrast, I expect you will observe no such restriction.  
_

_ Indeed, you need not, for you are not bound as I am. Like the empire that birthed it, the Tower asks a high price for its power and sustenance. Knowing your penchant to combine academic investigation with corporeal peril, I would be much obliged if you would apprise me of your activities in detail, for the sake of the tale as well as information. Humor this weary grandfather, will you?   
_

_ With warmest regards, _

_ The Crystal Exarch _

_ ~~**~~ _

_ Exarch, _

_ Ah, Sharlayan! Truly there is no finer city in all the world. Every conceivable academic interest may be indulged. Debates at every meal, and after supper, a candle in nigh each window to watch over late-night study. There are so many pleasant nooks in the Axiom that I can only hope to visit them all. Indeed, I will gladly remain in such environs as long as may be required.  
_

_ True to your supposition, I have availed myself to a measure of corporeal peril as well, having struck out on a research or treasure-seeking mission or three in the midst of my reading. I have brought together a small group of confidants, searing intellects and stout hearts all, and informed them of my interest in The Calling. This was the spell you used to convey Mistress Adura and the others to your side, yes? A formidable wreaking, and one far beyond _ _ me _ _ in practice. Theoretically, of course it can be understood in reverse, and that is the ground we mean to break. _

_ In answer to your unwritten entreaty, yes, of course I will help you. The more I think upon all of your accomplishments, and the scope of their meaning, the greater my awe and affection. Your errors are nothing before the majesty of your success. I daresay Mistress Adura and her companions know that full well, and so should you.  
_

_ Yours faithfully, _

_ G’raha _

_ ~~**~~ _

_ Dearest G’raha, _

_ It gladdens me so to hear that you are enjoying yourself in Sharlayan. As your heartfelt exuberance proves, your present occupation is of precisely the kind I would have liked most to pursue as a young man. Everything the Eighth Umbral Calamity took from me, and everything it gave—hope, purpose, determination, unbreakable bonds—I would<strike></strike> <strike>pass on</strike> give back to you.  
_

_ As I once told Archon Urianger, my closest confidant on the First: “In saving one, you would save none.” And yet, here I am. I now understand that the salvation of one can be the thing that matters most. How my lost friends coped daily with the irony that this truth remained so far beyond my ken, I will never know. _

_ I confess to you that I harbored a personal motive in my centuries-long quest for the secret of time travel. Anything, I reasoned, for the crucial bit of drive to propel myself to the very limit of novel thought. _

_ You, G’raha Tia, are the one I wished most dearly to save. That you should be now so pleased and fulfilled on my account sets my heart near to bursting. _

_ Live now as a shining emblem of the, as you so eloquently put it, “majesty of my success.”  
_

_ With great affection, _

_ The Crystal Exarch _

_ ~~**~~ _

_ Exarch, _

_ That ephemeral nymph, that sly vixen! Bearing your most recent missive, Mistress Adura arrived late in the night. I bade the innkeep prepare his best room for the Warrior of Light. This he attended to with great enthusiasm, but did she deign to stay in it? Nay! Responding to a curious knock in the darkness of night, I open the door to my own room, and who do I find on the threshold? We had shared such a wonderfully raucous time over supper that, I frankly admit, I succumbed immediately to her bewildering boldness. _

_ So we did pass the night together, _ _ oh, _ _ and then! I woke alone. I returned to the Axiom to continue the good work, as is my habit, only to find that she had, in great mischief, arranged to encounter my collaborators ahead of me and taken them aside. The knowledge she imparted of you has given them new faith in me, and in my purpose. In themselves they see your storied line of stalwart associates, and the pride in their eyes is most compelling _

_ I fear that all bestowed upon me now is because of your merits, and not my own. _

_ With respect, _

_ G’raha _


	3. The Desire Line

_ Dearest G’raha, _

_ I must needs apologize to you for my hypocrisy. I have said, “do not become me.” Yet, albeit subconsciously, I would see it done. Adura has her part to play as well, and we two have spoken at great length and depth on the appropriateness of creating such trappings for you. I am certain your heart aches to know that it is love that compels us to guide and place you as we have. And, I know that it is love that drives you to aid our friends. _

_ You, dear G’raha, have ever been filled with love. Yes, it does turn to anger and flippant defiance under the snide scrutiny of others, but nevertheless. I have never forgotten the moment I understood the purpose of my unassailable affection for others, my relentless passion for the truth. These qualities, this cherished wish to care for and aid those around us—it is the greatest secret of Allag, one buried in the ruins of an all-consuming lust for knowledge and power. Now, it is _ <strike> _ yours _ </strike> _ ours to bear forth into a brighter future. _

_ Always with you, _

_ The Crystal Exarch _

_ ~~**~~ _

_ Exarch, _

_ Once more, I thank you deeply for your words. Am I likewise so gentle and comforting? Adura (I notice we have each decided to dispense with “Mistress”!) insists from the depths of her heart ‘tis so. Naturally, I believe her. She’s like that, you know? _

_ I must tell you in detail of our encounter a few evenings past. As you know, she and I have grown steadily closer over these few moons. Indeed, that first playful tumble soon after my arrival in Sharlayan has proven far from singular. I have found my relationship with her to be rather the opposite of a distraction from my work—thoughts of her are a frequent reminder of its importance, and the faith placed in it. I know you pass your nights with her, as well. Don’t get a crick in your back, old man! _

_ I digress. I admit, I did not read your previous letter until some days after I received it. I admit, I was angry. That I should be pressed and moulded yet again—! I assure you, I am not proud of what follows: Deprived as yet of your bespoke comfort, I reacted poorly to Adura’s customarily earnest and joyful affections. She pursued me amongst the Axiom shelves, and her derailment of my late-night inspiration irritated me. Contrite, she apologized for her lack of restraint and promised to return later, but I was not finished. I brought her to the Central Atrium—do you recall the hanging cascade of firelights under the dome, and the gleaming fountain in the center?— I brought her there, and I rounded on her. I told her in no gentle or uncertain terms that she was confused at best, and at worst should not come to me in search of you. _

_ You can imagine to what I availed myself with such a tirade. “Are you attempting to explain to me that you are not the man I love?” she accused. She refrained from shouting, for she hardly needed to. Next, she said: “You are. And he is. To know one is to know the other, and to know both is to love more deeply than I can say.” I heard in her voice that some sudden resolve had possessed her. I abandoned the books I had collected. I went with her to her inn room, now indefinitely reserved for her use, and I will struggle to describe to you what transpired next. We had made love before, but never like this. Such careful attention, touches and looks until she knew I _ _ understood. _ _ She is so beautiful, so unhurried and deliberate in her pursuit of this pleasure or that. Does she behave thus with you? Pay no mind to this running ink. What is to be done? _

_ For the first time, she was still there when I woke. _

_ I love her. _

_ I love her. _

_ G’raha _

_ ~~**~~ _

_ Dearest G’raha, _

_ I read your letter, and I found your account so arresting that I read it a second time, and yet a third. You might consider investing in a better quality of ink; this one is very prone to running. In any case, a little mouse named Adura did wander into my reach a short time afterward, as she is wont to do in her scurrying about. I tell you frankly, I seized her. I was no slow-moving old man. My insistent roughness did stray toward disrespectful. You are unequivocally sworn to silence, by the by. When I had quite finished with her, she good-naturedly demanded to know what had prompted such uncharacteristic conduct. You will forgive me for permitting her to read your letter. I shan’t forget how she smiled, and then promptly wept. You ought to take care not to leave your parchments out in the rain. The little time after that proved the most heartfelt and peaceful she and I have spent together thus far, and for that I thank you. _

_ I had nearly forgotten — please find enclosed a singular gift, a labor of love for both involved. Should the mystery of its maker confound you, and it surely will, simply touch the bottom right corner of the paper with intention, and all will be revealed. _

_ On the reverse side, note the small rendition of the main aetheryte plaza of the Crystarium. You will see that its design is quite inspired by the Central Atrium. _

_ Your fellow purveyor of treasures, _

_ The Crystal Exarch _

_ ~~**~~ _

_ Exarch, _

_ Thrice now I have sat myself at this desk, hoping to elucidate in words the effect your gift has had upon me. Master Alphinaud’s rendition of you is so sensitive and soulful, and the level of detail is astounding! He has truly wrought the qualities of his subject onto the paper. Your playful smile, the certain surreal softness seeming to enfold you—it is captivating beyond words. It is as if the very contents of my heart are looking back at me. I will be certain to give the young Archon-in-waiting my highest compliments when he wakes. _

_ I have accorded your portrait a place of honor in our workroom, as a reminder. I fervently hope that our efforts will afford you a chance to live free of your past burdens, to rest and revel in the goodness you have brought to _ _ both _ _ worlds. May every blessing be upon you. _

_ We will find an answer. _

_ I promise you. _

_ I promise you. _

_ With deepest respect, _

_ G’raha _

_ ~~**~~ _

_ Dearest G’raha _

_ I am speechless in regards to your words of devotion toward me. Nonetheless, I thought to send this small note, lest you think me inattentive. How could I be? You are the very contents of my heart. _

_ Raha _


End file.
